Happy Birthday, Aoshi
by KurenoxArisaxx
Summary: It's Aoshi's birthday and Misao must find the perfect gift for her perfect crush. Please review!


**_After reading volume 6 (big version) of the manga, I fell in love with this pairing. Mind you I haven't finished the manga yet but I hope I can get the characters down as well as possible._**

**_This is my first RK fic, so if it's horrible, I'm very sorry. I know my writing style is too simple and plain but I tried my best to change it a little for this fic._**

**_Disclaimer: Rurouni Kenshin and the characters belong to Nobuhiro Watsuki. _**

**_One-shot for the pairing: Aoshi Shinomori x Misao Makimachi_**

* * *

It was a hot summer day in Kyoto, one of the most historical places in Japan. Misao Makimachi had lived here her entire life and traveled around it many times. However, today, the young Okashira found herself in an unusual panic. Somehow, someway, the young girl had gotten LOST on her way back to Aoiya.

'Damn, Gramps is gonna kill me!' Misao cried in her head as she looked in every direction, desperately hoping that her brain would recognize where she was. Unfortunately, the more she panicked, the further confused she seemed to become.

"How the hell did this happennnnn~" Misao thought back to only a little while ago, before she had left Aoiya on her mission...

**_~Flashback~_**

_"Misao!" Okina, retired Okashira and member of the Oniwabanshu as well as Misao's loving yet also very odd ball of a grandfather, stormed around Aoiya with fumes blowing from his ears. Today was a very important day so the elder man found it annoyingly weird that he couldn't seem to find said girl anywhere._

_Then, as Okina got ready to cry out his granddaughter's name once more, a figure dropped from the ceiling in a flash.  
The figure rose to her feet and saluted,_

_"Here I am!" Misao smiled cheerfully at Okina._

_"AHH!" Okina screamed, grabbing his chest in shock. After his calm composure returned, the old man whacked the girl over the head, "You nearly gave me a heart attack, ya little hyperactive weasel!"_

_"WEASEL?!" Misao screamed in insult. First Saito Hajime named her as such and now her own grandpa too? Where was the compassion?_

_The pair went onto argue about the nickname then somehow went to bicker about past annoyances. Eventually, Okina became tired and ceased the futile argument._

_"Enough is enough!" Okina spewed in anger, dragging Misao into the kitchen. Once they got into the medium-sized place for cooking, he pushed the girl onto a wooden chair placed near one of the small tables, "We have some much more important to discuss!"_

_The kunoichi crossed her legs, pretending to take on a serious attitude, "Alright, what is it, ya old piece of dirt?"_

_Anger veins appeared on the previous Okashira's face but he chose to ignore the immature remark. Instead of speaking, Okina locked eyes with Misao. Both eyed each other seriously for what seemed like hours. As the staring contest went on, Misao felt sweat form from the ex-ninja's glare. _

_Not able to take it anymore, the ninja girl launched herself from the chair as if she were a bird taking flight, "Hell, old man! What the crap is it?"_

_Okina smiled in victory at seeing the break in the teen's composure. Sometimes, he just loved to push her buttons._

_"As you most likely already know..." The old man stroked his beard in deep thought, "...a certain someone has a birthday today. So I need you to...Misao?"_

_But it was too late. Indeed, Misao knew whose birthday it was. And at the mention of it, Misao went instantly into adoring fangirl mode, now blocking out anything in the outside world (like Okina)._

_"Misao."_

_"..."_

_"Misao!"_

_"..."_

_Twitching. The old man could feel his face beginning to twitch violently._

_All of a sudden, all of Kyoto shook as it an earthquake had appeared; Aoiya seeming to be at the center of that quake, _

_"MISAO!"_

_Imitating a certain red-haired samurai, Misao's eyes went bubble-size as she fell to the floor, "Oro?!"_

_Okina yanked on the girl's ear as hard as he could manage, bringing it to his mouth so he could make sure she'd hear him nice and clearly this time, "Listen to me~" _

_Misao shuttered at the disturbing tone from her grandpa. Sometimes he could be a little too scary for his own good._

_"Y-Yes sir..." _

_"Good!" Crossing his arms, the man was finally able to proceed with what he had been earlier discussing, "I need you to go get some things for the party tonight."_

_Party? Oh heck. Knowing Aoshi, Misao was sure he wouldn't want such a thing. But if there was one distinctive trait about Okina, it was that he would take any opportunity he could find to have a party._

_The elder reached into his kimono and pulled out a paper that seemed to have a list of things to get written on it. Before Misao could so much as protest against the idea, Okina was pushing her out the doors of their home. Once outside, Okina threw the paper in the girl's face,_

_"Now go get everything on there and be back by sunset!"_

_Misao exhaled loudly._

_"Oh, and by the way..." Another evil smirk painted itself on the man's face, "If you're late coming back, I swear I'll force Aoshi into an arranged marriage with a woman who is mature in both body and mind and flash it in your face!"_

_Gasping and performing her earlier imitation of Kenshin in shock, Misao jumped up and took off at the speed of light._

_**~End Flashback~**_

Now, here she was. Lost in her own home country and fearing about the time she had left to get back to Aoiya. Misao had succeeded in getting the things on the list but once she had done that, the female ninja of the Oniwabanshu came to a horrible realization even worst then the one of her being lost.

'I didn't get Aoshi-sama a present!' She sobbed in her imaginative darkness of despair. So, at realizing this, Misao began running everywhere in attempt to find a last-minute gift for the man she adored so much. In the midst of her fangirl-impaled panic, Misao ended up lost, and now, disoriented as well.

At making the decision to keep walking until she could get directions back to Aoiya, Misao wobbled her way down a large road that seemed to be filled with...sword vendors?

Instantly stopping in her tracks, Misao looked at the small shops put on each sword side of the road. All had various displays of swords and other weapons. From katanas to sakabotos, the girl concluded that this street was a piece of heaven that must have fell to earth on her behalf.

The female warrior squealed loudly and stared at all the vendor shops with sparkly eyes and a big grin. She had never seen so many weapons at one time. Sure, she'd seen Okina and the other Oniwabanshu's weapon collections but this...for a fellow ninja, she couldn't help but be impressed and totally baffled.

"Wow, what a kickass-looking sword," Misao stared at a long katana in an indigo sheath, wrapped with a golden rope around the top, "It kind of reminds me of Aoshi-sama's swords..."

...And like a brick, it hit her.

The extremely happy grin on her face seemed to grow several sizes at that moment. A sword. **That's **what Misao could get her beloved Aoshi. It was perfect. Fate must have led her down the street for that very reason, right?

Misao grabbed the indigo-sheathed sword and began cuddling the weapon to her cheek. She then reached into her pocket and pulled out a sack of money, "I'd like this one, please."

The weapon vendor, dressed in a torn and filthy kimono and obviously had too much grease in his thinning hair, snorted loudly. His wrinkled eyes seemed to peer into Misao's soul that reminded her of her grandfather's glare.

"No freakin' way." The vendor spewed in a groggy, deep voice.

Misao's grin decreased in size at the man's odd tone, "Eh?"

The man before the Okashira spit the cigarette out of his mouth and yanked the sword out of her hands. He then made a shoo'ing gesture; telling Misao that this vendor was obviously sexist.

"Your lost purchase, buddy." Misao flashed a snooty look at the man before turning to go look at the other stands.

Sighing, the ninja continued to analyze the other swords at the other vendors. However, no matter how many beautiful weapons she found (and she found quite a few to suit Aoshi's taste), all vendors showed her the same treatment as the first. They all refused to sell a sword, or any weapon for that matter, to a little girl.

Misao couldn't be more pissed off. Sure, in this day and age, she was aware that men seemed to be far stronger when it came to combat and they were even preferred to be the ones sent into battle. Still, times were changing. At least Misao thought so. Women weren't just meant to be housewives but sadly, the girl could do nothing to change the people's' minds.

By the end of her search, Misao had been to a total of thirty-eight vendors. Alas, she still had not managed to get Aoshi any kind of gift. One question popped into her head at this point: why was this so hard?

"Ngh...WHAT IS SO WRONG ABOUT A GIRL WANTING TO BUY A SWORD?!" And just like earlier, the scream seemed to shake Kyoto like an earthquake.

The girl then decided it would be best just to try going back the way she came, in hopes of at least finding her way back home. And if she got lucky, perhaps she'd find some kind of a gift for Aoshi on the way.

Twenty minutes passed and Misao was glad that her surroundings had begun to seem familiar to her finally. Unfortunately, she was still unable to find a gift. To make matters even worst, it was already sunset and any kind of store would surely close soon.

At this point, Misao found herself sniffling and on the verge of tears. She could only imagine how bad it would be if she wouldn't be able to give a gift to Aoshi on his birthday. The fangirl's typical glomp and squeal over him wouldn't do the job today. Misao needed an actual present, to show Aoshi how mature she was becoming; and more importantly, show how strong her love for him was. Now that the other Oniwa members were gone and with Kenshin settled back in Tokyo, who else would take the time to show Aoshi a happy birthday? (Okay, Okina was trying but the party he had planned was more for him then it was for the previous Okashira of the Oniwabanshu group).

"I'm like the only one who is really trying. Damn gramps..."

"Hey you! Girl!"

Misao stopped at the voice and looked over to see a shop owner motioning her to come over. The Japanese girl obeyed and the owner pointed to a strange bag on his merchandise stand,

"I noticed you seemed pretty desperate to get a sword earlier. Saw you yelling at Yia-san for not selling you one."

'Yia-san? Must be this guy's friend...' Misao thought, staring at the bag.

"Anyways, take a look here!" The girl's blue orbs widened when the man opened the bag, revealing it's contents, "This is something far better than any sword."

Skepticism painted itself all across Misao's face, "...what is it exactly?"

The man leaned forward so he could be within whispering distance. His fat lips perked up in a fashion that honestly made the teen gag. They were nothing at all like Aoshi's luscious lips.

"Opium, steroids and any other drugs you could possibly want."

Drugs? This man was trying to sell her drugs? If people wouldn't sell her a sword, why sell her drugs? Furthermore, how the hell were drugs "better then swords"?

"No thanks." Misao bowed and turned to leave. But as she tried to leave, the shop owner continued to walk after her. Eventually, the Okashira broke into a sprint with the crazy drug dealer tailing after her.

"Come on, buy some!"

"Hell no, you creep!" Misao shouted, doing her best to brush through the crowd of people walking by, "I want to buy a gift for someone, not drugs!"

Suddenly, Misao felt her arm violently yank backwards, her body spinning as a result. The vendor then appeared right in front of her,

"Drugs can be a great gift." The determined seller mumbled in a disturbing tone.

Looking down, it became apparent from the tight hold the man had on Misao's wrist that he had no thoughts of letting her escape. Sure, she could use her ninja skills to get her way out of this but with all the innocence people that were around them, was that a good thing to try?

'Ah great, now I sound like Himura!' She fumed inward, attempting to break free.

"Buy them!"

"Never-" Misao then heard a sharp cracking sound echo from her wrist. Pain soon followed the sound throughout her entire arm. Letting out a scream, the injured ninja dropped to her knees in agony and gripped her wrist.

The girl took a few breaths, trying to keep calm. Misao opened her eyes and noticed large bruises all over her arm. She shot a glare at the crazed drug dealer staying above her, "Bastard...you broke it."

The man let out a laugh and took hold of Misao's other arm, "That's right and I'll break the other if you're not more polite."

The Okashira adverted her ocean-colored eyes in possible directions at which she could escape. There were too many people around them to try and break from the man through fighting. And looking back over, Misao noticed the man rub her wrist in warning.

Crap. She had to get out of this somehow. Fast.

'Look's like I'll have to gamble...' The seventeen-year old breathed, sneaking out a kunai she had tucked away in her shirt.

Without warning, Misao flung the weapon at the man, managing to hit him. Now that her captor was distracted by his own pain, she brushed past him and flew onto a roof in retreat.

_**~xXx~ **_

"Aw man..." Misao felt like sobbing. She had FINALLY made it back to Aoiya, thankfully. However, she had just realized she had left the groceries she had gotten at Okina's request in the streets when she ran from the crazy vendor. Not only that, but she still had not ended up getting a gift for her love.

The time was now eight o'clock. Far past the time her grandfather had demanded she return.

"That old man is going to kill me several times over..."

From inside the inn, Misao heard the oncoming sound of dashing feet. The girl sighed and braced herself for what was to come.

The door slid open at the speed of light, revealing an extremely furious Okina. His eyes were glowing red, his grey hair seemed to be standing up and Misao was sure she'd never seen so many veins appear on one person's face in her entire life.

"Uh...sorry for being so late." Misao faked a smile and rubbed her bruised arm in awkward embarrassment.

Smoke flew out of Okina's ears, "Where in the world have you be-" But the elder stopped in mid-sentence when his eyes wandered down to the injuries on Misao's body and arm. His angry expression was instantly replaced with one of shock and concern.

Misao faked a laugh, doing her best to make her grandfather believe everything was okay. She didn't like people worrying over her. Never had and probably never would.

Okina ignored the teen's words of being "okay" and took Misao's broken wrist in one hand and began examining it carefully.

"Gramps, I'm fine..."

"...Did something happen?"

Misao felt her body jolt at hearing an all too familiar voice come from behind Okina. The grandfather and granddaughter pair looked back to see the very person they had spent the all day working hard for: Aoshi Shinomori.

As it usually did when the handsome fighter was near, Misao felt her face flush a slight red. Deciding to remain silent, the kunoichi took back her arm and narrowed her head.

"That's a good question, Aoshi." Okina looked back at his hurt grandchild, "What did happen?"

Seeing no way to get out of this one, Misao briefly explained the events that had occurred on the streets.

Aoshi walked up to get a better look, his turquoise eyes nearly popping out of his head in the process. He knew Misao could be reckless and clumsy as a result of her own hot-headed temper. But, for goodness sake, the girl looked as if she'd been run over by a carriage.

At hearing Misao's story, Okina explained how it was "alright" and that he would go out to get supper. In the mean time, Aoshi was told to help the younger ninja tend to her wounds.

With Okina leaving, Misao was now alone with Aoshi. After entering Aoiya, the pair went to the room where the first aid kit was kept. Now, the girl sat with her back turned towards the man, and remained uncharacteristically silent. Aoshi did find it odd. Misao was NEVER quiet. Especially not in front of him.

'Are her injuries that bad?' The boss of the Oniwabanshu wondered in attempt to absorb some sort of information on the girl's state by staring at her back. Aoshi was soon snapped out of his trance when he heard the first aid kit fall out of Misao's hand and hit the floor with a thunk.

As he always did no matter what the situation was, Aoshi rose from his seat, remaining calm as he strode his way over to lean down at Misao's side.

"_Gomenasai_...Aoshi-sama."

Said man rose his brows slightly. Why and for what was she apologizing for? Given, Misao was more loyal and polite around him then any other but she never just up and apologized for anything.

"What's your reason for apologizing?" He asked in his typical monotone.

Misao didn't so much as turn her head. She kept it held down, just as she had down earlier. How could she look Aoshi in the face after what had happened? Today was his birthday and she had sworn to herself and Okina that she'd make it the best birthday Aoshi ever had. But, because of her own childish antics, Misao had left the supplies for the party lying in the middle of Kyoto. As for the gift she had planned to get for her beloved, she had failed to get one. Now, here she sat, beaten up and looking absolutely pathetic. The girl knew that if Hannya, Beshimi, Hyottoko, and Shikijo were there now, that they'd be disappointed in her.

Stupid. Misao just felt...stupid.

"I...didn't get you anything for today."

Aoshi frowned, "Today?"

Misao finally turned her head to look at him, "Your birthday. I wasn't able to get you a gift."

Aoshi said nothing in return but instead, stared at the scratches and bruises covering the kunoichi's body. Had she gotten all those injuries simply in attempt to get a gift?

Folding her knees up to her chest, Misao buried her face in depression. She wouldn't even bother with bandaging her wounds. She was too tired and knew they'd close up soon anyways, so she figured, why bother?

Well, that's what she had thought but apparently Aoshi had something different in mind. At that moment, the man took Misao's busted arm gently in hand and began treating it with supplies in the medical kit. Through the middle of the bandaging, Aoshi's fangirl found the courage to look up again.

"Aoshi-sama..."

"You chased all over town and got injured for some cliche thing like a birthday gift?" The twenty-five year old shook his head, "You remain far too reckless. You should do something about that, or else you'll end up getting far more hurt then this someday."

Sniffling, Misao studied the bandages now wrapped around her skin. Somehow, the pounding in it had stopped, and the pain had completely vanished.

Aoshi rose from the floor and made a B-line for the door. As he turned to leave, Misao heard him mention something about fixing tea for the both of them.

"Wait!"

Aoshi stopped in the doorway but didn't turn to face the girl.

Misao felt her courage beginning to disappear again, so she bit her lip. She still felt bad about not getting any gift. She wondered how Aoshi really felt about that. Was her angry? Annoyed? Upset in any way? If he was, the swordsman had every right to be.

"...Are you...I mean, no gift..."

Still refusing to rotate his body, Aoshi cut Misao off in the middle of her worries, "I don't need another gift. I think you've given me plenty already."

...Question marks popped up above Misao's head. What was this he was speaking of "another gift"? When had she given him anything?

Finally, Aoshi exited without another word, thus leaving Misao confused in her seat.

'She went running all over Kyoto looking for something to give me, and ended up getting injured. All this for some stupid gift.' Aoshi felt like shaking his head again. He didn't understand why someone would go to so much trouble for one little thing. However, as he entered the kitchen, he found his eyes wandering over to his reflection in the glass of the window. To his own surprise, Aoshi noticed that he was...smiling?

_"I don't need another gift. I think you've given me plenty already."_

Aoshi felt his smile grow in size, "...Quite true. I think that girl has given me all I need."

While Misao Makimachi didn't realize it at the time, she had indeed given Aoshi Shinomori one of the best gifts anyone could give anybody. On the very day he was born, Misao had finally gotten Aoshi to smile.

* * *

**_Author comments: I'm sorry this fic was so bad. I thought the idea behind it wasn't too horrible but I feel I might have messed up a lot in this. Oh, and about the idea of Aoshi smiling...I've read more of the manga then I've watched of the anime (I've only watched a couple of episodes of the anime and from watching a few AMVs on Youtube, I think Aoshi smiles more in the anime. I don't think he smiles at all in the manga, which was the whole big thing Misao wanted to do: get him to smile). So I thought her gift to him being to make him smile was cute. _**

**_Please tell me what you guys thought._**


End file.
